Parish Papers eBook

But we know something of a Church founded by an apostle,
presided over for a time by an apostle, which was
full of schisms. This was the Church of Corinth.
(See First Epistle to the Corinthians, first three
chapters.)

These schisms were marked by differences of mind and
judgment; and by “envying, strife, and divisions.”
Its “Protestantism” may, no doubt, have
occasioned this.

But along with these divisions, and partly their cause,
partly their effect, there was not only a warm attachment
to particular ministers, but positive antagonism to
others professing the same faith, and doing the same
work. From the sameness of human nature in every
age, we can quite understand how each party would
defend their sectarianism. “We are of Apollos,”
some might have thus said. “We do not admire
Peter. He is too much of a Jew for us; besides,
he denied his Lord, and dissembled along with Barnabas
at Antioch. We prefer our own minister even to
Paul. He is a much more eloquent man; of a much
more commanding figure and appearance; and how profound
he is in his knowledge of the Scriptures!” “We
are of Paul,” others might have cried; “for
he was chosen specially by Christ; and he has been
honoured by Him more than all; and does not the Church
of Corinth, moreover, owe its very existence to his
preaching and labours? It is a shame to belong
to any other!” “We cling to Peter,”
a third party might have said; “he lived with
Christ when He was on earth, saw His miracles, heard
His words, was treated after the resurrection with
special love, and received from Him a special commission
to feed His sheep. Apollos is no apostle;
and as for Paul, he persecuted the Church, and confesses
himself that he is not meet to be called an apostle.
Apollos is good, Paul better, but Peter is best!”
“We belong to neither,” others could have
boasted: “your divisions are so many, your
differences so great, that we have retired from all
your meetings in weariness; and each of us are of
Christ only, and call no man master but Him; you should
all join us, the Christians:”—­thus
making use of the very name of Christ to characterise
a sect. Such were some of the schisms; and to
the schismatics St Paul said, “Ye are yet carnal:
for whereas there is among you envying, and strife,
and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men?
For while one saith, I am of Paul; and another, I
of Apollos; are ye not carnal?”

The apostle desired to heal those schisms, and to
bring the members of the Church into one mind.
How did he endeavour to effect this?

Had he been a Papist, he might have said—­“Why
thus divided? Because you are not building on
the one true foundation, which is Peter! Do you
not understand the meaning of the name, Cephas,
or the Rock, given to him, and intended to teach all
Christians that the temple of the Church was to be
built upon this rock, and this only; against
which the gates of hell cannot prevail? Therefore,